Horse racing: When stars shone in Salford - Manchester Evening News Sport Horse racing: When stars shone in Salford Once the November mists and autumnal chill set in, as they have with a vengeance, there’s an older breed of sports fan in Manchester who harks back nostalgically to the days when the town was packed with racegoers anticipating the November Handicap, writes Martha Kelner. Share A healthy crowd of race-goers watching the action in Castle Irwell's heyday Share Get daily updates directly to your inbox + Subscribe Thank you for subscribing! Could not subscribe, try again laterInvalid Email Once the November mists and autumnal chill set in, as they have with a vengeance, there’s an older breed of sports fan in Manchester who harks back nostalgically to the days when the town was packed with racegoers anticipating the November Handicap, writes Martha Kelner. It was the flagship meeting at Castle Irwell in Salford, more commonly known as Manchester Racecourse. Racing royalty met football greats as Bobby Charlton and the Manchester United team left The Cliff training ground, across the road from the course, to go the races.

“I remember going down to the track with Bobby on occasion,” remembered Wilf McGuinness. “Most of the team went down for the November Handicap as well. “One year we were invited into the Parade Ring by the jockey, Joe Mercer. “Joe was urging me and the other players to ‘get on’ his mount. “I’ll always remember the horse’s name. It was called Petit Royale. He was the jockey so you had to listen to what he was saying. We all put on a full week’s wages. We couldn’t believe it when it got left in the stalls. “I certainly learned a lesson from that. I put a little bit on the Grand National now but that was my last big bet.” The final contest at Manchester Racecourse was held on November 9, 1963. The Goodbye Consolation Plate was won by Fury Royal, steered across the finishing line by Lester Piggott in the shadows of the great Grandstand. There was no consolation though, then or since, for punters who spent their days and evenings at the track, in the bar and on the rails cheering the likes of Piggott and Scobie Breasley.

Plans put forward by property developer Peel Holdings for a racecourse in Salford were most recently denied in January 2010 on noise and traffic grounds. It was the latest in a series of rejected planning applications, further disappointment for those who have always hoped the sport of kings would return to the city. “It is a great shame a city like Manchester doesn’t have a racecourse,” said Fred Done, the Warrington-based founder of Betfred bookmakers. “For a place of this size, with such an interest in sport, not to have a racecourse is a travesty.” Done was an on-course bookmaker at the track in the Irwell Valley before the days of Betfred and the proliferation of high street bookmakers. “It was a very popular racecourse, the crowds were huge and the atmosphere incredible,” said Done. “I stood there a lot in my early career. In those days it was much harder to get a bet on than it is now. “The on-course bookies were far busier. I remember one weekend meeting, there were seven races on both the Friday and Saturday card.

“The favourite won 13 of the 14 races and I still came away on top.” Another familiar presence at Castle Irwell was Prince Monolulu. The West Indian tipster was hard to ignore with his colourful clothing and feathered headdress. “He had a catchphrase ‘I gotta horse! I gotta horse’,” recalled Done. “He was always shouting, trying to drum up trade. “He was a bit of an impostor really – and he wasn’t actually a prince, of course. His real name was Peter Carl Mackay. Slightly less exotic.” The Manchester Racecourse Grandstand, which was a revolutionary sporting stadium, the first in the UK to have corporate boxes, had only been built 18 months before the track finally shut. The site is now owned by the University of Salford and on it stands student accommodation and training fields. There isn’t even a plaque to remember this great sporting relic. It is surely remiss not to recognise a site where some of the greatest jockeys had their finest victories and a time when footballers would miss a week’s wages.

Like us on Facebook Most Read Most Recent MEMORIES OF MANCHESTER RACECOURSE IN SALFORD - Salford Star - with attitude & love xxx MEMORIES OF MANCHESTER RACECOURSE IN SALFORD Star date: 25th June 2016 `SHOOTING' THE JOCKEY, RAS PRINCE MONOLULU AND MORE... The badly named `Manchester Racecourse' off Littleton Road shut in 1963 but its memory is still alive in the minds of many Salford people. Here, acclaimed Salfordian racing author, John Norbury, goes in search of anecdotes, from `shooting' the jockeys to a bloke named Ras Prince Monolulu, to the Clifton landlord who bought a horse off a bookie and saw it win in the mist. With exclusive photos of the old racecourse courtesy of Geoffrey Travis... Full report here... click image to enlarge At 43 years of age I am never going to be able to offer any personal insight into the Racecourse; the course sadly ceased trading nine years before I was born.

However, that has never stopped me thinking of what it must have been like to visit, and after spending a huge chunk of my childhood in nearby Romney St at Nana Norbury's, I feel somewhat envious of those of a certain age, able to reminisce with fondness of times spent in and around the track. I guess the first bone of contention is in the naming of the course (more on this later), for the purpose of the article I follow literary protocol/cowardice by naming it as Manchester Racecourse I have visited in excess of sixty racecourses encompassing all these shores have to offer, and jaunts over to Ireland have seen me enjoy thrills and spills in Limerick, Dundalk and County Kildare. I have stood in the parade ring at Longchamp to witness Kieron Fallon draped in an Irish flag, return victorious aboard Dylan Thomas at the 2007 Prix de l'arc de Triomphe. I booked a ridiculously short, albeit thoroughly enjoyable, five-day trip and took my mother to California to see the Breeders Cup in 2012.

It is fair to say I have invested a lot of time and money into the sport I love so much and, with no desire to appear egotistical, I feel it is a fair bet (no pun intended) that if there is anything worth knowing about horse racing, then I am probably aware of it. Delving into the history of Manchester Racecourse is certainly a pleasure and not a chore. The stranglehold of the internet allows each and every one of us the ridiculously easy ability to download the facts. Numerous sites will tell you all you need to know about its history, location, races staged etc. Knowledge is power and the importance of this can never be under estimated. I take my writing serious, but I am not a serious writer. I wish for everything to have a relevance without the reader reaching for the paracetamol after the first paragraph. My aim is not to bombard anybody with statistics but to call upon the residents of Salford (past and present) to say what the Racecourse meant to them and theirs. I do however have to talk a little about certain things engrained in its history, and this brings me first and foremost to its title, that being `Manchester' Racecourse.

The naming does not sit comfortably with proud Salfordians and I sympathise with them to some degree. A huge bulk of its history shows racing took place in Salford, and although our city centre lies within close proximity of its last staged venue at Castle Irwell, Salford is a city in its own right that never perhaps got the recognition it deserved for being the home of racing, 'til its demise over fifty years ago. Is it Manchester or Salford Racecourse? I can assure you the answer is not divided in these parts. I enlisted the help of family and friends to help provide the fuel for this article and it is the help of Auntie Barbara I call upon to the witness box first. I say `box', maybe upturned milk crate is more appropriate in this context as this was my earliest memory of the tic-tac man stood aloft on the aforementioned, but sadly no longer seen at any racecourses. "I went to Broughton High School and recall being able to view the horses from the classroom window" she recalls "The black GIs were stationed at Castle Irwell whilst the white GIs were stationed at Burtonwood Air Base.

This is not a tale of colour, I am just telling it as it was in those days".* I have had to tread very carefully in selecting the right people to approach when asking for contributions to this article. With the course closing in 1963, mathematics told me I needed to approach people of at least sixty years of age. Replies of `How old do you think I am!' have been volleyed back to me far too many times. Mathematics was never my strong subject. Earlier newspaper articles show Betfred supremo, Fred Done, traded at the course in his early days, and is on record as saying it is a great shame that Manchester no longer has its own racecourse. Castle Irwell was the first site to provide hospitality via corporate boxes, a fact unknown to many yet, sadly, it was not long after these were implemented that the track closed down. Memories of the old Whit Lane area Salford I have enlisted the help of members of the above social media site and it is them I thank for providing individual insights into their memories of the Racecourse. Many evoked happy times as children that brought them back (if only momentarily) with their parents.

Everyone of a certain age appears to have a tale to tell of the racecourse that sadly, no longer is. John Catterall recalls "kids go-karting within the course, and sitting on the white bridge watching them...they say things were different then. Nowadays in such a security conscious world, this would probably not be allowed on grounds of health and safety. Having said that, when was the last time anybody seen a homemade go-kart?" Joan Alice Parker recalls tales of "budding young entrepreneurs charging racegoers a "small fee" in return for making sure that when they returned to their car it was in the same condition as when they left it", and here was I thinking protection rackets were a thing of my generation! Elaine Coleridge, administrator of the Whit Lane site, provides further trips down memory lane of jockeys boarding at the Beehive public house on Holland Street, of which she recalls with regularity her mother saying they don't eat enough to "fill a sparrow", sadly something that is still a peril of the job. Jean Davenport remembers the less regimental managers from local soap factory Cussons, organising days out at the races for workers, as a reward for their efforts.

Roger Cooper lived in nearby Thursfield Street, and recalls back in 1946 being able to see the horses in full flow (albeit momentarily) from his bedroom window. I take this chance to thank Roger for the newspaper cutting he provided me with, which helped eke out more research for this piece. Paul Davies recalls perhaps the most humorous of accounts, about the array of buses lined up between the Griffin public house and St Boniface's church ready to take racegoers to the course. As the `clippies' would be taking their fag break, Paul and his army of dirty rotten scoundrels would try and outdo each other to see who could `bus-hop' the most vehicles without attracting the attention of the conductors. Tony Martin (Salford lad) but now residing on the West Coast of Canada says: "I vividly remember whenever I stayed at grandad's (Ted Mather) I would look out of the bedroom window, as living on Littleton Road I held the perfect vantage point to overlook the racecourse". Tony recalls an old 303 rifle being stored in a cupboard and, amongst friends, he would practice shooting the riders whenever they came into view from jumping a fence.

To ease the mind of the most gullible of readers, it should be noted the gun was not loaded. It is whilst enjoying libations in the Waggon and Horses, Irlams o' th' Height, that I engage in conversation with a Mr Topping who I notice is contemplating a bet himself. I inform him of the article I plan to write, and, whilst shy at first, he revels in telling me the story of days gone by when then landlord of the Robin Hood pub, Manchester Road, Clifton, bought a horse off a local bookie with a well prepared plan to run it in a feature race at Castle Irwell. The horse (running in thick fog) eventually appeared out of the mist to come home victorious to land a well-executed coup and regulars witnessed the landlord nail a generous amount of fivers above the bar. Many people when sharing their memories with me, described in varying detail the eccentricities of a gentleman that research leads me to naming as Ras Prince Monolulu. He was a figure regularly seen on British racecourses who, for all intents and purposes, became quite a celebrity. His background is as colourful as the finery he wore on track.

He was said to be married six times, although I have no evidence to support this. I am sure true Salfordians will have welcomed him with open arms and I can only imagine the banter between the locals and this John McCririckesque tipster. Tales like these will resonate with so many local residents and I am sure I could have provided many more but I drew the line at door-to-door canvassing! Drinking and racing go hand in hand for me which I unashamedly admit. There is nothing more I like than a pint within the course or at a nearby pub or both for that matter, which brings me conveniently on to engage in conversation about the Racecourse pub on Littleton Road... Back in the early 70s I used to walk past this place with nana and never batted an eyelid, I was more interested in visiting the local shops nearby, and adding to my collection of football stickers that came with the free chewing gum. We would enjoy regular jaunts to the paper shop near O' Connors butchers. Mr O' Connor was a man who fascinated me and I am sure he is a name many will be able to familiarise with.

I remember being in awe of him as a kid, fascinated by his white overalls and booming Irish accent and to this day, reliant on memories, I could probably narrate a worthwhile piece on him alone. "That you here for your `rodi' bacon Annie?" he would ask nana. Twice within the last six months I have taken a trip to the Racecourse pub to try and get an insight into what a feel of the place would have been like on race day. I am reliably informed the pub once lay encased within perimeter railings of which there is no sign of today. In fact anybody like myself entering with illusions of grandeur, expecting the pub to resemble how it was when the racecourse was trading, will be disappointed. Many local residents of a certain age will already be aware of this. I have had many people tell me it is just like it was when it was full of racegoers. This is quite simply not true. Sure there are things that still remain. "The leaded windows at the front of the pub are still intact, and much of the interior wood panelling remains the same if somewhat relocated", says the ever informative bar manager.

Entering via revolving doors takes you to a plaque detailing previous winners of the infamous Manchester Cup, from 1930 till the course closure in 1963. The last name inscribed being a certain Mr L. Piggott for his win aboard Espresso. There is limited racing memorabilia within, but the framed History of Horse Racing in Manchester is worth a detailed look, if only to notice the misspelling of legendary Australian jockey Scobie Breasley. Not for the first time, I have been given some privileged information but this bears no resemblance to punting. Areas of this magnificent pub remain condemned upstairs but there is hope of it being returned to its former glory. There have been talks to again provide accommodation at the pub in the same rooms that did just that, from when the course itself was in operation. Some artefacts within those rooms have remained intact and I for one will be making a booking to stay should this information be deemed correct. I feel a little cheated that we don't have or never have had, a racecourse in my city during my lifetime. New buildings (many with a lack of charm admittedly) are erected with regularity, so is it unreasonable to expect a racecourse not be within an investors compass?

I certainly hope we can look forward to one on our doorsteps in the not too distant future. I am sure Salfordians would relish the chance to show the southern softies that anything you can do at Royal Ascot; we can do better... *The book Forgotten: The Untold Story of D-Day's Black Heroes, at Home and at War, by Linda Hervieux (published by Harper Collins) does delve into providing some credence into this claim regarding the separation if not the location. I'd like to thank Geoffrey Travis for providing and allowing me to publish colour photographs taken from his cherished family scrapbook. *For details of John Norbury's book, Finished Last at Folkestone: One Man's Ambition to Visit All 60 UK Racecourses ï¿½ click here Jennifer Fletcher wrote at 12:10:29 AM on Wednesday, July 6, 2016 John,I lived Romney St.

remember your nana living the end house...also me a& my sister Elizabeth "minded" many cars of the race goers outside our house....I also used to watch the races from a friend's bedroom window on the front of Littleton Rd...We have recently read your book "Finished Last at Folkestone "Loved it...Pete( my hubby )especially loved reading about your dad Matt. ....Sean Dineen ( also known as Mr O'Connor) was such a lovely man & became a neighbour when we moved to Castlewood Rd... Wishing you all the best for this next book about Manchester Race Course. which was in Salford.!!! xx ï¿½ at 1:36:56 AM on Monday, June 27, 2016 Nice read John, well done and best wishes, Alex ï¿½ Gareth L wrote at 10:25:15 AM on Sunday, June 26, 2016 Rick Holt - Thanks for the link to Britain from above just spent a fascinating 20 mins looking at how places have changed. - I never new the race course was that shape or that there was a separate footy ground next to it.

ï¿½ Bill wrote at 1:03:10 PM on Saturday, June 25, 2016 The racecourse was also a German prisoner of war camp during World War Two, wonder if anyone has any pictures of this ï¿½ Rick Holt wrote at 1:03:00 PM on Saturday, June 25, 2016 You may have these already.My father Harold Holt,born at 1 Matlock Ave,used to be a butcher at Stockdales on Gt Cheetham St.Saturday afternoos,Sunday and Wednesday afternoons he drove taxis for Crank's at market place.He picked up a fare on day from a B&B on Cheetham St .The man asked for the racecouse,to which my dad replied "you can walk it from here in a couple of minutes"It turned out the guy was a jockey,and gave my dad a tip,My dad not being a gambling man asked how he was sure it would win,to the reply "I'm riding it"After locating and consulting a friend in the know,they raised a stake and won a considerable amount,for those days.

ï¿½ elaine coleridge wrote at 1:02:53 PM on Saturday, June 25, 2016 John I have enjoyed reading your article at last.. The Memories of old Whit lane group were so pleased you asked for our help. ï¿½ Lost racecourses: How UK housing boom killed city venues - BBC News BBC News Lost racecourses: How UK housing boom killed city venues 24 June 2015 Close share panel Image copyright Chris Pitt Image caption Bromford Bridge racecourse in Birmingham had its own station and special buses ran from the city on race days Racecourses that once attracted tens of thousands of people now lie beneath airport runways, university campuses and housing estates. It is now 50 years since Birmingham's Bromford Bridge course shut and it is one of many that vanished thanks to a housing boom and the lure of developers' money.

Bromford Bridge, Birmingham First race: 14 June 1895 Last race: 21 June 1965 Image copyright Chris Pitt Image caption The course once boasted the record for the longest continuous bar in the whole world Reminders the Bromford Estate in Birmingham was built on the site of a racecourse can be found in the street names - Reynoldstown Road, Haydock Close, Doncaster Way, and, most obviously, Arkle Croft. During its post-war peak people flocked to the course, which was only five miles (7.2km) from the city centre. Racing journalist and historian Chris Pitt, who wrote the book A Long Time Gone about the UK's lost racecourses, was 12 when the course closed. "It had its own railway station or you could catch buses from [the city centre] direct to the course - that's what made Bromford Bridge so much more popular and accessible. "They built a big bar in the middle of the course which held the record for the longest continuous bar in the whole world - at 334ft (102m) it beat a working man's club in Victoria, Australia.

"When the pop boom started in the 1960s there was a natural mound in the centre of the course, and they used to have bands there - I remember seeing groups like The Swinging Blue Jeans." Neither the bar nor the music could save the course when Birmingham Corporation eyed the 180-acre site as somewhere to build an estate of 1,900 homes as part of its slum clearance programme. The corporation paid £1,250,000 for the site, £21.5m in today's money. Hurdles were replaced by high rise tower blocks and a housing estate, though the parade ring survives as a circular pathway around a green. Image copyright Chris Pitt Image caption The paddock at Bromford Bridge racecourse, Birmingham Alexandra Park, London First race: 30 June, 1868 Last race: 8 September, 1970 Image copyright Chris Pitt Image caption Racing at Alexandra Park, London - the London Gold Cup 1899 There was once a racecourse only seven miles (11km) from the centre of London, a course so loved by racing pundit John McCririck he wants his ashes to be scattered there.

"I always say that part of my soul died when they closed it in September 1970," he said. McCririck said the racecourse, also known as "The Frying Pan" due to its shape, had a unique atmosphere. "One of the great advantages was that nearly all the starts took place in front of the stands. "You could hear the jockeys shouting and the starter trying to control them, and there was the smell of fish and chips and burgers - it was a magnificent evening out - there is nothing quite like Ally Pally." Many jockeys did not share his enthusiasm - Willie Carson called the course "dangerous" to both horses and riders. But during its post WWII peak, crowds of 10,000 and more would turn out for evening meetings. Those kind of crowds were a distant memory by the 1970s - with just 2,749 punters turning up for the last meeting. "I fear it's too late [to bring back racing] though the outline of the course is still there," John McCririck said.

"But I've told the Booby, my wife, my ashes are to be scattered where the furlong pole was." Image copyright Google Image caption The Alexandra Park track was nicknamed "The Frying Pan" as its long straight was joined to a tight circuit Castle Irwell, Salford First race: 26 May 1847 Closed: 1867 - 1896 - racing was held at New Barns, Salford, now the site of Media City Reopened: Easter 1902 Last race: 9 November, 1963 Image copyright Chris Pitt Image caption The final November handicap at Manchester Racecourse in 1963 The Castle Irwell course lay in a bend of the River Irwell, which made it so notorious for fog that comedians joked about it in their acts. When Les Willis was in his early teens he lived in one of the roads leading to the course.

"There were thousands of people walking down our road - the chip shop at the end used to serve sandwiches in the morning and chips in the evening, and they put out tables and chairs in the street for people to use." Off-course betting was illegal at the time, and he also recalls the backstreet bookmakers plying their trade, with a lookout watching out for the police. "They were always known as 'uncle', and people would say 'I'm just going to see uncle' when they were off to place a bet. "It was always the lookouts who ended up in court, and the bookies would go along and pay the fines for them." Image copyright Google Image caption The bricked-up turnstiles to Manchester Racecourse are still visible near a bridge over the River Irwell The future of the course seemed secure when a new stand was built in 1962, but a year later it was closed. Castle Irwell too fell victim to the building boom, developers making an offer that for the land that could not be refused. Just over 20,000 people turned out for the last day of racing.

But the houses never got built and the former racecourse is now part of the University of Salford, with its new stand metamorphosing into a student bar. Image copyright Google Image caption The racecourse was actually in Salford, in a loop of the River Irwell Image copyright Chris Pitt Image caption A new stand was opened at Manchester Racecourse only a year before it closed, and is now part of Salford University Hurst Park, Surrey First race: 19 March 1890 Last race: 10 October 1962 Image copyright Chris Pitt Image caption The finish of the Richemont Stakes at Hurst Park Hardly a trace remains of one of the most successful racecourses of the post-war period - Hurst Park, on the banks of the River Thames, near Hampton Court, in Surrey. Although the course was still profitable and popular with both jockeys and punters, it was also on prime building land and in 1962 the owners decided to sell it to a developers for £905,000. "Losing Hurst Park was a great loss but at the end of the day it's about market forces," said McCririck.

After the last race a bookie hung a wreath on the finishing posts with a card saying: "With sincere memories of a friendly racecourse from all race goers." The turf from Hurst Park, famed for its quality, was bought by Ascot for its new National Hunt course. And one of the stands was bought by Mansfield Town FC and transported the 150 miles (240km) to their Field Mill ground. The most visible sign that racing once took place are the impressive brick gate posts on Graburn Way, which was closed on race days as the seven furlong start ran across it.

Image copyright Google Image caption Gates across Graburn Way were closed when racing was taking place at Hurst Park Gatwick racecourse First race: 7 October, 1891 Substitute Grand National races run on; 24 March 1916 (The Racecourse Association Steeplechase), 21 March 1917 (The War National Steeplechase), 21 March 1918 Last race: 21 April 1948 Image copyright Chris Pitt Image caption Racing at Gatwick - the Clayton Selling Chase Nowadays the only visible reminder that there was racing at Gatwick is the Flying Horse pub in South Terminal. Yet the racecourse hosted a substitute Grand National three times during WWI, when the Aintree course in Liverpool had been turned into an Army base. The last of the "Nationals" was won by Ernie Piggott, grandfather of the famous jockey Lester Piggott. There was already an aerodrome next to the racecourse by 1936, and with the outbreak of WWII the rest of the racecourse was requisitioned for flying.

There was only one post-war meeting, in 1948, which attracted a crowd of 20,000. Any trace of the racecourse vanished during an £8m redevelopment of the airport in 1958. However the bandstand does survive - in the town centre of nearby Crawley. Image copyright Chris Pitt Image caption The paddock at Gatwick racecourse Image copyright Rhys D Hutchings Image caption The former bandstand from Gatwick racecourse is now in Crawley town centre MossValley: 1847, New Racecourse at Manchester (ILN) 29 May 1847 [Click thumbnail for enlargement] This new Course, allowed to be "one of the finest in England," lies in Broughton, two miles from the Manchester Exchange, on land belonging to Mr. Fitzgerald, of Irwell Castle, immediately below the old course of Kersall Moor. It is almost surrounded by the river Irwell, is nearly on a level, and upwards of a mile in length. It has three approaches: one from Mancheser, by the Suspension Bridge; another through Wallness; and the third by Pendleton.

The Course is held on lease by 24 proprietors, at a rental of £500 per annum. The cost of the Stands, Stabling, &c., designed by Messrs. Starkie and Cuffley, of Manchester, has been upwards of £8000; and about £2000 has been expended on the course, roads, &c. The first stone of the Grand Stand was laid by N. Slater, Esq., in March last; it is an elegant structure, and has been substantially built by the executors of the late Mr. W. Tees; it will contain 1000 persons; and there are, also, two other Stands, which will accommodate 7200. The races commenced on Wednesday. BACKGROUND & LINKS Not too many specific links concerning the racecourse itself unfortunately. A number of sites mention it as part of more general articles connected with racing or Manchester's history and give more or less the same basic facts, and a few have a little more information, but there seem to be no dedicated pages we can refer you to.

There are some photographs online however, and links to these, along with pages on associated topics or in relation to the Salford area, are provided further down the page. So, without the benefit of any local knowledge of the area or detailed research, we have attempted to put together the following potted history by combining various snippets seen around the web. Please note however that no facts have been confirmed, and there are certain discrepancies between different sources, so you should treat the following only as a guide and not as 'gospel' :) There are records of horseracing at Barlow Moor and Kersal Moor from the 17th century; and Kersal Moor was also the scene of the 'White Fell Race', the last of which was run in 1846. The Anti-Corn Law League and the Chartists separately assembled in huge meetings at Kersal Moor, we believe at the racecourse, in the general period of agitation and riots associated with these movements in the late 1830s and 1840s.

In so far as the sport of kings is concerned, the anti-racing lobby succeeded in stopping the sport in Manchester for a period in the mid-18th century, but it resumed at Kersal Moor in 1760. The Manchester Cup was first run there in 1816, and a few years later there were permanent stands and rings. Then, as the ILN piece above describes, a new course was built in 1847 at nearby Castle Irwell, in a pronounced bend of the river. According to a newsletter at the Chalk-NDC site, 'Castle Irwell got its name not from a castle, but from the large castellated brick house built in 1826 by John Purcell Fitzgerald, then owner of Pendleton Colliery.' By 1867 the Castle Irwell site had been inherited by someone opposed to gambling (one source indicates this was John Fitzgerald's son) who would not renew the lease, so the company was forced to relocate its venue, though not far away, to 100 acres purchased at New Barns in Salford.

The first Manchester November Handicap was run in 1876; and in 1888, at the inaugural running of the Lancashire Plate, the prize money of £10,000 was the highest in the country at the time. In steeplechasing the Lancashire Chase run at Manchester on Easter Mondays, once it became established, was a serious rival to Aintree's Grand National in the late 19th century. [NB: we have not been able to establish if the Lancashire Plate and the Lancashire Chase were the same or different races.] The Salford City Reds Rugby League Club also has ties with the New Barns site. Founded in 1873, its home was at several different sites in the earliest years, but the first home match at a field just north of the racecourse was played against Widnes in October 1879, an event commemorated by the same two teams with a centenary match in October 1979  the result was a draw on both occasions.

When 'Buffalo Bill' Cody took his Wild West Show to Salford, Lakota tepees erected on the banks of the river Irwell became a familiar sight for about six months over the winter of 1887/88: they stayed longer than intended as the show was so successful with the populace. We assume this was the Castle Irwell site, at this time vacated by the racecourse company. When the show revisited in 1903, one of the company, a Blackfoot Indian by the name of Charging Thunder, decided to stay behind and settle in Salford, and his descendants are still in the city today. For more information about various native American individuals and other aspects of these two visits, see 'Story of the Salford Sioux' in the links list below. On 1st January 1894, after six years of construction, the Manchester Ship Canal was opened to shipping, and in May the official opening ceremony was performed by Queen Victoria from the deck of the Royal Yacht Enchantress at Mode Wheel Lock, followed by a 21-gun salute fired from the New Barns racecourse adjacent to the canal.

In 1899 the Canal Company sought to compulsorily purchase the course in order to construct a new dock and warehouse, and their acquisition was ultimately successful though interest from another buyer had forced the matter to litigation. In 1905 the new No. 9 Dock, the largest of its kind at the time, was opened by King Edward VII and Queen Alexandra. The site of No. 9 Dock is now occupied by the Lowry Centre at Salford Quays. The Manchester Racecourse Company had meanwhile been able to purchase its former venue and, after reconstruction, the first meeting back at Castle Irwell was held in 1902. As part of the redevelopment of the new course, the building known as 'Castle Irwell', from which its name had been taken, was demolished. Despite its situation virtually surrounded by the river Irwell, which was not always ideal (one commentator remarks it was 'both foggy and boggy'), Castle Irwell was to become one of the country's foremost courses.

The Lancashire Oaks was first run there in 1939, and in 1941 it was host to the oldest English Classic, the St Leger Stakes, the only occasion a Classic was run in Manchester (it was moved around to different venues during the war years). However the course was evidently then taken over by the military: a contributor to the BBC's WW2 People's War pages, recalling childhood memories of the Manchester Blitz, and living in a Salford pub at the time, remembers that 'Black US troops were in evidence, quartered on the nearby Manchester Racecourse at Castle Irwell. Some of the local landlords refused them admittance but my father was more pragmatic, maintaining that their money was as good as anyone else's.' In 1951 England's first evening race meeting was held at the course; and in 1961 a new stand with a cantilevered roof was built for members, designed by a young architect from Manchester, Ernest Atherden. It was the first sporting venue in the country to offer 'private viewing' boxes, or what today we know as executive boxes.

Shortly afterwards Atherden went on to 'sell' the same idea to Manchester United FC who had commissioned him to redesign the Old Trafford ground. As one site comments: 'Thus was born the modern age of corporate sporting hospitality.' Manchester Racecourse, meanwhile, was experiencing financial difficulties, and the cost of the new stand cannot have helped. The decision was taken to sell up to developers, and, little more than two years after the stand had been built, the last race meeting before the course closed was held on 7 November 1963. Lester Piggott and Scobie Breasley were among the jockeys competing on that occasion. In fact the developers' plans at the time for housing did not pass a public inquiry. This must have been why the racecourse was still available in 1964 (according to one reference seen) as a venue for a wedding reception  presumably in the members' stand?

Today the former racecourse is a residential village complex for well over 1500 students of the University of Salford, and the Pavilion (the innovative members' stand built in 1961) is run by the students' union, and includes a bar, disco and other social facilites. More than one site mentions the 'Pav' being haunted by a ghost!  some say of a punter who hanged himself after losing all his money, others that it's a jockey. The red brick turnstile and ticket block, built when the racecourse was redeveloped in 1901, is now a students' launderette, but apparently 'its original purpose is still clearly identifiable'. A section of the Irwell Sculpture Trail follows the riverbank around part of the perimeter of the former course.

The Manchester November Handicap was moved to Doncaster racecourse, where it is still a fixture today as the November Handicap, though it is said to have lost its former prestige; the Lancashire Oaks was transferred to Haydock Park (£90,000 prize money was awarded to the winner in 2005); but the Lancashire Chase disappeared into history when the course closed in 1963. The fact that the course was known as 'Manchester' apparently still rankles in some quarters. In the Autumn 2001 issue of Salford's LifeTimes Link , recalling one of their two greatest assets (the other being Salford Docks), they say of the racecourse: 'Smack in the middle of our city but our neighbours stole its name. A place where folk from far and wide would flock to see the races. It was the second of our assets that put pride on the Salford faces.' From a reference elsewhere it also seems that Eccles in turn is aggrieved that it has been 'appropriated' by Salford.

In 2001, as part of a larger recreational and leisure scheme to be developed between Worsley and Boothstown, and to be known as Salford Forest Park, an application was submitted to Salford City Council by Peel Holdings (owners of the Trafford Centre) to bring racing back to Greater Manchester after 40 years, but there has been fierce opposition on conservation and other grounds (for some details, see this page and also here ). Revised plans were unveiled in 2004 but two years on, as far as we can tell, the proposals are still undergoing detailed assessment and the application has not yet been determined. Information from Peel Holdings' perspective about the new racecourse, other equestrian facilities and all the other proposals can be found at their Salford Forest Park site. Other links: (a) The Greyhound Derby site has several old pictures of the Castle Irwell course: from the list of closed courses choose the links for Manchester. The 1935 page in particular has two good photos (information on pages for all years seems the same, only the pictures differ), and there's also a map of the course at the pages for either 1890 or 1950.

(b) Transport Archive: an old photo showing the racecourse at New Barns on the far side of the Manchester Ship Canal. A long list of other archive photos to view of the Canal, Manchester Docks, Salford Quays, Trafford Park, etc, is available from the same site here . (c) Thoroughbred Heritage: The Story of the Salford Sioux , with a link from there to Know your Salford Sioux . (e) Among a gallery of many interesting photos taken around Salford in 2000, there were several shots available at Paul Teague's pages ( here ) of the pavilion and turnstiles, but unfortunately the site was offline as of early Nov 2006. (f) The Lowry Centre has a timeline for Salford Quays and No. 9 Dock in particular, and beneath that a brief history of the Manchester Ship Canal. (g) Manchester Ship Canal home site (a subsidiary of Peel Holdings). (h) The Greater Manchester County Records Office (GMCRO) has a large gallery of photos of the Manchester Ship Canal. (l) Salford, my home town .

(m) The BBC's Where I Live section for Manchester has a page, Is Manchester Racecourse a non-starter? , which includes an artist's impression of the proposed new grandstand. Comments on the scheme were invited, and plenty made. (n) A phantom motorway also apparently goes (or went) straight through the former course/present Salford students' village. If you ever wondered why there used to be no Junction 16 on the M62, this piece and maps at the Pathetic Motorways site (and comments in response) explain it all . . . (o) Salford Reds Rugby League Club: history . Chartists: the Chartist Ancestors site has a wealth of material about the development of Chartism, in which the Manchester area played a pivotal role ('The first great Chartist rally took place on 25 September 1838 when a crowd ...

gathered on Kersal Moor to elect delegates to the first Chartist convention.'): Lost racecourses: How UK housing boom killed city venues - BBC News BBC News Lost racecourses: How UK housing boom killed city venues 24 June 2015 Close share panel Image copyright Chris Pitt Image caption Bromford Bridge racecourse in Birmingham had its own station and special buses ran from the city on race days Racecourses that once attracted tens of thousands of people now lie beneath airport runways, university campuses and housing estates. It is now 50 years since Birmingham's Bromford Bridge course shut and it is one of many that vanished thanks to a housing boom and the lure of developers' money. Bromford Bridge, Birmingham First race: 14 June 1895 Last race: 21 June 1965 Image copyright Chris Pitt Image caption The course once boasted the record for the longest continuous bar in the whole world Reminders the Bromford Estate in Birmingham was built on the site of a racecourse can be found in the street names - Reynoldstown Road, Haydock Close, Doncaster Way, and, most obviously, Arkle Croft.

During its post-war peak people flocked to the course, which was only five miles (7.2km) from the city centre. Racing journalist and historian Chris Pitt, who wrote the book A Long Time Gone about the UK's lost racecourses, was 12 when the course closed. "It had its own railway station or you could catch buses from [the city centre] direct to the course - that's what made Bromford Bridge so much more popular and accessible. "They built a big bar in the middle of the course which held the record for the longest continuous bar in the whole world - at 334ft (102m) it beat a working man's club in Victoria, Australia. "When the pop boom started in the 1960s there was a natural mound in the centre of the course, and they used to have bands there - I remember seeing groups like The Swinging Blue Jeans." Neither the bar nor the music could save the course when Birmingham Corporation eyed the 180-acre site as somewhere to build an estate of 1,900 homes as part of its slum clearance programme.

The corporation paid £1,250,000 for the site, £21.5m in today's money. Hurdles were replaced by high rise tower blocks and a housing estate, though the parade ring survives as a circular pathway around a green. Image copyright Chris Pitt Image caption The paddock at Bromford Bridge racecourse, Birmingham Alexandra Park, London First race: 30 June, 1868 Last race: 8 September, 1970 Image copyright Chris Pitt Image caption Racing at Alexandra Park, London - the London Gold Cup 1899 There was once a racecourse only seven miles (11km) from the centre of London, a course so loved by racing pundit John McCririck he wants his ashes to be scattered there. "I always say that part of my soul died when they closed it in September 1970," he said. McCririck said the racecourse, also known as "The Frying Pan" due to its shape, had a unique atmosphere. "One of the great advantages was that nearly all the starts took place in front of the stands.

"You could hear the jockeys shouting and the starter trying to control them, and there was the smell of fish and chips and burgers - it was a magnificent evening out - there is nothing quite like Ally Pally." Many jockeys did not share his enthusiasm - Willie Carson called the course "dangerous" to both horses and riders. But during its post WWII peak, crowds of 10,000 and more would turn out for evening meetings. Those kind of crowds were a distant memory by the 1970s - with just 2,749 punters turning up for the last meeting. "I fear it's too late [to bring back racing] though the outline of the course is still there," John McCririck said.

"But I've told the Booby, my wife, my ashes are to be scattered where the furlong pole was." Image copyright Google Image caption The Alexandra Park track was nicknamed "The Frying Pan" as its long straight was joined to a tight circuit Castle Irwell, Salford First race: 26 May 1847 Closed: 1867 - 1896 - racing was held at New Barns, Salford, now the site of Media City Reopened: Easter 1902 Last race: 9 November, 1963 Image copyright Chris Pitt Image caption The final November handicap at Manchester Racecourse in 1963 The Castle Irwell course lay in a bend of the River Irwell, which made it so notorious for fog that comedians joked about it in their acts. When Les Willis was in his early teens he lived in one of the roads leading to the course.

"There were thousands of people walking down our road - the chip shop at the end used to serve sandwiches in the morning and chips in the evening, and they put out tables and chairs in the street for people to use." Off-course betting was illegal at the time, and he also recalls the backstreet bookmakers plying their trade, with a lookout watching out for the police. "They were always known as 'uncle', and people would say 'I'm just going to see uncle' when they were off to place a bet. "It was always the lookouts who ended up in court, and the bookies would go along and pay the fines for them." Image copyright Google Image caption The bricked-up turnstiles to Manchester Racecourse are still visible near a bridge over the River Irwell The future of the course seemed secure when a new stand was built in 1962, but a year later it was closed. Castle Irwell too fell victim to the building boom, developers making an offer that for the land that could not be refused. Just over 20,000 people turned out for the last day of racing.

But the houses never got built and the former racecourse is now part of the University of Salford, with its new stand metamorphosing into a student bar. Image copyright Google Image caption The racecourse was actually in Salford, in a loop of the River Irwell Image copyright Chris Pitt Image caption A new stand was opened at Manchester Racecourse only a year before it closed, and is now part of Salford University Hurst Park, Surrey First race: 19 March 1890 Last race: 10 October 1962 Image copyright Chris Pitt Image caption The finish of the Richemont Stakes at Hurst Park Hardly a trace remains of one of the most successful racecourses of the post-war period - Hurst Park, on the banks of the River Thames, near Hampton Court, in Surrey. Although the course was still profitable and popular with both jockeys and punters, it was also on prime building land and in 1962 the owners decided to sell it to a developers for £905,000. "Losing Hurst Park was a great loss but at the end of the day it's about market forces," said McCririck.

After the last race a bookie hung a wreath on the finishing posts with a card saying: "With sincere memories of a friendly racecourse from all race goers." The turf from Hurst Park, famed for its quality, was bought by Ascot for its new National Hunt course. And one of the stands was bought by Mansfield Town FC and transported the 150 miles (240km) to their Field Mill ground. The most visible sign that racing once took place are the impressive brick gate posts on Graburn Way, which was closed on race days as the seven furlong start ran across it.

Image copyright Google Image caption Gates across Graburn Way were closed when racing was taking place at Hurst Park Gatwick racecourse First race: 7 October, 1891 Substitute Grand National races run on; 24 March 1916 (The Racecourse Association Steeplechase), 21 March 1917 (The War National Steeplechase), 21 March 1918 Last race: 21 April 1948 Image copyright Chris Pitt Image caption Racing at Gatwick - the Clayton Selling Chase Nowadays the only visible reminder that there was racing at Gatwick is the Flying Horse pub in South Terminal. Yet the racecourse hosted a substitute Grand National three times during WWI, when the Aintree course in Liverpool had been turned into an Army base. The last of the "Nationals" was won by Ernie Piggott, grandfather of the famous jockey Lester Piggott. There was already an aerodrome next to the racecourse by 1936, and with the outbreak of WWII the rest of the racecourse was requisitioned for flying.

There was only one post-war meeting, in 1948, which attracted a crowd of 20,000. Any trace of the racecourse vanished during an £8m redevelopment of the airport in 1958. However the bandstand does survive - in the town centre of nearby Crawley. Image copyright Chris Pitt Image caption The paddock at Gatwick racecourse Image copyright Rhys D Hutchings Image caption The former bandstand from Gatwick racecourse is now in Crawley town centre

Question: What was the name of the Manchester horse racecourse that closed in 1963?
Answer: Castle Irwell